Uttar Pradesh Transport Minister and Ballia Nagar MLA Daya Shankar Singh unleashed a scathing rebuke on a Public Works Department (PWD) executive engineer for opening a newly constructed bridge over the Kathar Nala without informing him. The midnight confrontation, which took place on Tuesday, highlighted tensions over protocol and political credit in the minister’s constituency.

Singh, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, expressed outrage at the engineer’s decision to allow public access to the bridge without his knowledge, accusing the official of acting under external influence, possibly from Rasra’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Umashankar Singh, though he did not name him directly. “I’m the MLA and minister here. You opened the bridge without informing me. Are you contesting elections? Is the BSP giving you a ticket?” Singh snapped, questioning the engineer’s motives.

Speaking to reporters, Singh revealed that the PWD had previously delayed the bridge’s opening, citing incomplete testing and lack of administrative approval despite his repeated requests. He alleged that the sudden decision to open it on Tuesday was driven by “someone who interferes in PWD affairs” to deny him and local BJP leaders credit. “This will be reported to higher authorities,” he vowed, signaling an escalation.

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Singh also criticized the PWD’s track record in Ballia, noting that no significant infrastructure, not even a drain, had been built since 2015 despite allocated funds. “How can an officer ignore the minister, MLA, and municipal chairman? There must be higher protection,” he said, hinting at deeper systemic issues. The incident underscores ongoing political rivalries and raises questions about administrative accountability in Uttar Pradesh’s infrastructure projects.

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